I'd read the reviews before I saw the film, so I was prepared for bad dialouge (hey, it's a disaster film) I was prepared for weak characters and I was prepared for the slow build up, I was prepared to see amazing visual affects and hopefully some excellent action (this from Wolfgang Peterson, cause hey, I liked Air Force One!). No one told me the build up was that long, its 40 minutes till that boat even hits the water let alone it being past the one hour mark before that storm comes in. Yes, I know it was character building- but most of it was so superfluous that it was just boring, and in the end, not much character was developed, only, situation, and that could have taken half the time.
...BUT OH LORD ONCE THAT STORM STARTS BLOWING. Computer digital effects have never truly impressed me since Jurassic Park, no major foward steps have been made since then. Until now, the clouds, the waves, the spray, while of course not totally believable, were jaw dropping, amazing, and in context with the storyline, terrifying. Once that storm kicks in its just drawdropping and I was terrified, and suspended... that boat, those waves, you just have to see it, on the big screen believe me, it is truly freaky stuff. And Peterson can handle the action scenes, such as the piece with the out of control anchor, and lets not forget the Coastguard scenes, never before have I seen people, and their technology, so frail, compared to the raw power of nature.
Yes, some of the dialouge is truly banal, the character situations such as the feud between two of the fishermen, and again, thrills are along time in the coming, but when they come, they come, and the development at the start does come in handy, these are after all real characters, and despite some two-dimensionality, we must sub-consciously feel for them, and their plight. To know it is true, that makes it all the more moving, and all the more scary.
On the other hand, when the credits began to roll, and the lights came up, my friend beside me said "Didn't that suck". So there you go.
...BUT OH LORD ONCE THAT STORM STARTS BLOWING. Computer digital effects have never truly impressed me since Jurassic Park, no major foward steps have been made since then. Until now, the clouds, the waves, the spray, while of course not totally believable, were jaw dropping, amazing, and in context with the storyline, terrifying. Once that storm kicks in its just drawdropping and I was terrified, and suspended... that boat, those waves, you just have to see it, on the big screen believe me, it is truly freaky stuff. And Peterson can handle the action scenes, such as the piece with the out of control anchor, and lets not forget the Coastguard scenes, never before have I seen people, and their technology, so frail, compared to the raw power of nature.
Yes, some of the dialouge is truly banal, the character situations such as the feud between two of the fishermen, and again, thrills are along time in the coming, but when they come, they come, and the development at the start does come in handy, these are after all real characters, and despite some two-dimensionality, we must sub-consciously feel for them, and their plight. To know it is true, that makes it all the more moving, and all the more scary.
On the other hand, when the credits began to roll, and the lights came up, my friend beside me said "Didn't that suck". So there you go.